Is "kinky" a negative word?
Avi Jacobson
>One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
>good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
>However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
>What does kinky really mean?
I would say you're both right. Don't forget, the fact that a word has
an erotic connotation does not necessarily make it a "bad adjective".
Even the word "sexy" itself is often used in an innocent, positive
connotation (meaning "attractive") about anything from clothing to
automobiles to advertising copy.
Random House says "_Slang._ way-out, offbeat, or far-out, esp.
sexually." Is that "not a good adjective"? Mind of the beholder, I
would say.
--
Avi Jacobson, Audio Lingual Consultant | When an idea is wanting,
Home Page: | a word can always be
http://www.netvision.net.il/php/avi_jaco | found to take its place.
email: avi_...@netvision.net.il | -- Goethe
Nicole V Biamonte
> One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
> good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
> However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
>
> What does kinky really mean?
I think it started out meaning "twisted," in the physical sense --
for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would use
that construction, these days.
Now "kinky" is usually used to describe sexual practices that are
probably not shared by the majority of the population (bondage, S&M,
bestiality, "water sports," what-have-you. Its opposite in this context
is "vanilla").
Whether it has a negative connotation or not depends entirely on
your point of view.
IMO, no.
Nicole
Oscar del Rio
>
> One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
> good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
> However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
>
> What does kinky really mean?
>
> lc...@cisco.com
I always find the on-line Webster very useful.
It says:
Word: kinky
kink-y adj. -i-er,- i-est. 1. Tightly curled; frizzy: kinky hair. 2.
Informal. a. Marked by or making use of a perverted eroticism. b.
Marked by sexual perversion.-kink'i-ly adv.-kink'i-ness n.
M. Jonas
Avi Jacobson <avi_...@netvision.net.il> wrote:
>
>Random House says "_Slang._ way-out, offbeat, or far-out, esp.
>sexually." Is that "not a good adjective"? Mind of the beholder, I
>would say.
>
Isn't it a bit strange for a dictionary to define a slang word only by
giving three other slang words as synonyms? "Offbeat" might just pass
as colloquial (though I'm not sure), but certainly "way-out" and "far-out"
are slang themselves and quite dated at that.
Martin
Bill Fisher
> lc...@young.cisco.com (Liz Chen) wrote:
>
> >One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
> >good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
> >However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
>
> >What does kinky really mean?
>
> an erotic connotation does not necessarily make it a "bad adjective".
> Even the word "sexy" itself is often used in an innocent, positive
> connotation (meaning "attractive") about anything from clothing to
> automobiles to advertising copy.
>
> sexually." Is that "not a good adjective"? Mind of the beholder, I
> would say.
>
One hint about the semantic development of this term comes from
the title of a book that my father bought when he was a boy, about 1911.
It's "Kinks", and it's full of unusual tricks of the Boy Scout kind,
like how to jerry-build a lean-to for shelter, or fashion a fish hook
out of stuff found in a woods.
- billf
Matthew Rabuzzi
Avi Jacobson <avi_...@netvision.net.il> writes:
: lc...@young.cisco.com (Liz Chen) wrote:
:
: >One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
: >good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
: >However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
:
: >What does kinky really mean?
Ulotrichous. Black is beautiful.
But in the slang sense, I assume that "kinky" as
"far-out, wild" in general preceded its being applied nearly
exclusively to sexual habits (assumption based on common rules
of word pejoration). Although I just used the word "pejoration"
here, it seems to me that kinky/strange can either be some
desirable goal/fantasy or be quite literally beyond the pale (far out).
That's going to depend on the mores of the speaker.
On a related note, we still use the word "straight",
now contrasted with "queers" or "gays". Formerly, another
contrastive pole was "bent" (a straight line twisted,
but in a different way as that yielding kinks). In fact,
there's a play titled "Bent" about a homosexual man
(?in a concentration camp?). When did this term pass in and
out of its vogue?
............................................................
We used to have game shows like "What's My Line?"
Now we have talk shows that are basically "What's My Kink?"
Matthew Rabuzzi
Eric Landau
> On a related note, we still use the word "straight",
> now contrasted with "queers" or "gays". Formerly, another
> contrastive pole was "bent" (a straight line twisted,
> but in a different way as that yielding kinks). In fact,
> there's a play titled "Bent" about a homosexual man
> (?in a concentration camp?). When did this term pass in and
> out of its vogue?
"Straight" can also mean law-abiding, as when a criminal resolves to
"go straight from now on." Although I've heard "bent" used to mean
homosexual, this is rare in my experience. I have, however, frequently
heard "bent" used as the opposite of straight in this latter sense, as a
synonym for "crooked," which is, of course, also a literal antonym of
straight.
--
Eric Landau, APL Solutions, Inc. (ela...@cais.com)
"Sacred cows make the tastiest hamburger." -- Abbie Hoffman
Matthew Rabuzzi
Bill Fisher <bi...@osi.ncsl.nist.gov> writes:
: lc...@young.cisco.com (Liz Chen) wrote:
: > What does kinky really mean?
: One hint about the semantic development of this term comes from
: the title of a book that my father bought when he was a boy, about 1911.
: It's "Kinks", and it's full of unusual tricks of the Boy Scout kind,
: like how to jerry-build a lean-to for shelter, or fashion a fish hook
: out of stuff found in a woods.
Wow, I knew Boy Scouts were supposed to help little old ladies cross
the street; I didn't know they also tied them up in granny knots!
............................................................
Is that knotty, naughty, or kinky?
Matthew Rabuzzi
bruce bowser
> > One of my friend insists that kinky is not a
> > good adjective and mostly is used in erotic stuff.
> > However, I heard people used it in a way as strange.
> >
>
> for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would use
> that construction, these days.
Paul Carmichael
> On Thursday, February 8, 1996 at 3:00:00 AM UTC-5, Nicole V Biamonte
> wrote:
>> On 6 Feb 1996, Liz Chen wrote:
>> > One of my friend insists that kinky is not a good adjective and
>> > mostly is used in erotic stuff. However, I heard people used it in a
>> > way as strange.
>> >
>> > What does kinky really mean?
>>
>> I think it started out meaning "twisted," in the physical sense --
>> for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would use that
>> construction, these days.
>
> Knappy could be used.
>
>> Now "kinky" is usually used to describe sexual practices that are
>> probably not shared by the majority of the population (bondage, S&M,
>> bestiality, "water sports," what-have-you.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinky_Boots_(song)
--
Paul.
https://paulc.es/elpatio
Steve Hayes
> On Thursday, February 8, 1996 at 3:00:00 AM UTC-5, Nicole V Biamonte
> wrote:
>> On 6 Feb 1996, Liz Chen wrote:
>> > One of my friend insists that kinky is not a good adjective and
>> > mostly is used in erotic stuff. However, I heard people used it in a
>> > way as strange.
>> >
>> > What does kinky really mean?
>>
>> I think it started out meaning "twisted," in the physical sense --
>> for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would use that
>> construction, these days.
>
> Knappy could be used.
But to me "kinky" mainly means not normal, or not your average whatever
-- something different. If can be good or bad, depending on the c ontext,
but I would mostly be inclined to use it positively.
If I described something as "kinky" it would usually be a sign of
approval.
I would never describe anything as "knappy" because I don't know what it
means.
Athel Cornish-Bowden
still around?
--
Athel -- French and British, living mainly in England until 1987.
Jerry Friedman
> On Mon, 18 Jul 2022 12:56:39 -0700, bruce bowser wrote:
>
> > On Thursday, February 8, 1996 at 3:00:00 AM UTC-5, Nicole V Biamonte
> > wrote:
> >> On 6 Feb 1996, Liz Chen wrote:
> >> > One of my friend insists that kinky is not a good adjective and
> >> > mostly is used in erotic stuff. However, I heard people used it in a
> >> > way as strange.
> >> >
> >> > What does kinky really mean?
> >>
> >> I think it started out meaning "twisted," in the physical sense --
> >> for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would use that
> >> construction, these days.
> >
> > Knappy could be used.
> I've no idea what "knappy" means - as in "knapsack"?
is sometimes applied to black people's hair. In my youth, when afros
were popular, children (mostly black) used it to insult black children
whose hair needed to be combed with an afro pick, or picked with an
afro comb. Now hair like that seems to be popular among boys and
young men (possibly because it looks sloppy and their mothers don't
like it), and "nappy" seems to apply to black people's natural hair in
general and seems to be considered offensive. I've even seen "the
other n-word".
Next: Don Imus.
> But to me "kinky" mainly means not normal, or not your average whatever
> -- something different. If can be good or bad, depending on the c ontext,
> but I would mostly be inclined to use it positively.
>
> If I described something as "kinky" it would usually be a sign of
> approval.
Hm. I've mostly heard "kinky" applied to sexual practices.
--
Jerry Friedman
CDB
> bruce bowser wrote:
>>> Liz Chen wrote:
>>>> One of my friend insists that kinky is not a good adjective
>>>> and mostly is used in erotic stuff. However, I heard people
>>>> used it in a way as strange.
>>>> What does kinky really mean?
>>> I think it started out meaning "twisted," in the physical sense
>>> -- for example, "her hair is really kinky." I don't think I would
>>> use that construction, these days.
>> Knappy could be used.
> I've no idea what "knappy" means - as in "knapsack"?
left in Black people's use.
"Adjective
nappy (comparative nappier, superlative nappiest)
Having a nap (of cloth etc.); downy; shaggy.
(US, informal, sometimes offensive) Of hair: tightly curled or twisted;
frizzy (often specifically in reference to Afro textured hair)"
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nappy
> But to me "kinky" mainly means not normal, or not your average
> whatever -- something different. If can be good or bad, depending on
> the c ontext, but I would mostly be inclined to use it positively.
> If I described something as "kinky" it would usually be a sign of
> approval.
> I would never describe anything as "knappy" because I don't know what
> it means.
Rich Ulrich
>...
>>Friedman
>
> Indeed, there's someone often called "Kinky Friedman".
> The Web explains:
>
>|Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944)
>|is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist,
>|politician, and former columnist for Texas Monthly who
>|styles himself in the mold of popular American satirists
>|Will Rogers and Mark Twain.
>Web (2022).
Kinky Friedman -
That looks like Wikip, but you omitted where it said that
he was given the nickname for his hair. I once owned a
couple of his LPs. Somewhat on the transgressive side.
"They don't make Jews like Jesus Anymore."
I think of "kinks" as applying to garden hoses and plans,
rather than sex practices. But "kinky" is most often sexual.
"Kinky Boots" was a musical play and musical, extending the
metaphor for twisted sex.
>
> . Otherwise, Mark Twain (who was just mentioned in
> the Web quotation) wrote in "The Innocent Abroad":
>
>|Riffians with heads clean-shaven, except a kinky scalp-lock
>|back of the ear
>"The Innocents Abroad" (1869) - Mark Twain (American) (1835/1910).
>
--
Rich Ulrich
bruce bowser
Tony Cooper
<rich....@comcast.net> wrote:
>On 5 Aug 2022 12:57:51 GMT, r...@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:
>
>>Jerry Friedman <jerry_f...@yahoo.com> writes:
>>>Hm. I've mostly heard "kinky" applied to
>>...
>>>Friedman
>>
>> Indeed, there's someone often called "Kinky Friedman".
>> The Web explains:
>>
>>|Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944)
>>|is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist,
>>|politician, and former columnist for Texas Monthly who
>>|styles himself in the mold of popular American satirists
>>|Will Rogers and Mark Twain.
>>Web (2022).
>
>Kinky Friedman -
>That looks like Wikip, but you omitted where it said that
>he was given the nickname for his hair. I once owned a
>couple of his LPs. Somewhat on the transgressive side.
>"They don't make Jews like Jesus Anymore."
>
>I think of "kinks" as applying to garden hoses and plans,
>rather than sex practices. But "kinky" is most often sexual.
>
>"Kinky Boots" was a musical play and musical, extending the
>metaphor for twisted sex.
Quite enjoyable. As I remember it, it was the story of revitalizing a
company that made shoes by adding a line of "kinky boots" designed to
bear up when worn by drag performers.
I don't remember anything kinky, sex-wise, in the movie.
--
Tony Cooper - Orlando Florida
I read and post to this group as a form of entertainment.
Jerry Friedman
> On 5 Aug 2022 12:57:51 GMT, r...@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:
> >Jerry Friedman <jerry_f...@yahoo.com> writes:
> >>Hm. I've mostly heard "kinky" applied to
> >...
> >>Friedman
> >
> > Indeed, there's someone often called "Kinky Friedman".
> > The Web explains:
> >
> >|Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944)
> >|is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist,
> >|politician, and former columnist for Texas Monthly who
> >|styles himself in the mold of popular American satirists
> >|Will Rogers and Mark Twain.
> >Web (2022).
>
> Kinky Friedman -
> That looks like Wikip, but you omitted where it said that
> he was given the nickname for his hair. I once owned a
> couple of his LPs. Somewhat on the transgressive side.
> "They don't make Jews like Jesus Anymore."
Ride 'em, Texas Jewboy!
> > . Otherwise, Mark Twain (who was just mentioned in
> > the Web quotation) wrote in "The Innocent Abroad":
> >
> >|Riffians with heads clean-shaven, except a kinky scalp-lock
> >|back of the ear
> >"The Innocents Abroad" (1869) - Mark Twain (American) (1835/1910).
--
Jerry Friedman
CDB
Richard Heathfield
--
Richard Heathfield
Email: rjh at cpax dot org dot uk
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29 July 1999
Sig line 4 vacant - apply within
Peter T. Daniels
Adam Funk
> On 5 Aug 2022 12:57:51 GMT, r...@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:
>
>>Jerry Friedman <jerry_f...@yahoo.com> writes:
>>>Hm. I've mostly heard "kinky" applied to
>>...
>>>Friedman
>>
>> Indeed, there's someone often called "Kinky Friedman".
>> The Web explains:
>>
>>|Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944)
>>|is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist,
>>|politician, and former columnist for Texas Monthly who
>>|styles himself in the mold of popular American satirists
>>|Will Rogers and Mark Twain.
>>Web (2022).
>
> Kinky Friedman -
> That looks like Wikip, but you omitted where it said that
> he was given the nickname for his hair. I once owned a
> couple of his LPs. Somewhat on the transgressive side.
> "They don't make Jews like Jesus Anymore."
couldn't appreciate it.
> I think of "kinks" as applying to garden hoses and plans,
> rather than sex practices. But "kinky" is most often sexual.
>
> "Kinky Boots" was a musical play and musical, extending the
> metaphor for twisted sex.
>
>
>>
>> . Otherwise, Mark Twain (who was just mentioned in
>> the Web quotation) wrote in "The Innocent Abroad":
>>
>>|Riffians with heads clean-shaven, except a kinky scalp-lock
>>|back of the ear
>>"The Innocents Abroad" (1869) - Mark Twain (American) (1835/1910).
>>
>
--
nothing from history. I know people who can't even learn from what
happened this morning. Hegel must have been taking the long view.
---Chad C. Mulligan